With the redesign of the Red Dragon III line of high performance pumps from Royal Exclusiv it was inevitable that there would be a protein skimmer model in the mix. The DC Red Dragon Mini 5000 and its variable speed brushless DC motor is the perfect candidate for the the production of a foam fractionating cloud of air and water. Just like the standard DC Mini RD 5000, the skimmer version is extremely quiet with noise levels below 32dB and it draws 50 watts and pushes 5000 liters per hour (~1300 gph) with the air turned off.

However once the air is turned on we expect that the needle wheel equipped DC Mini RD 5000 will draw upwards of 2000 liters of air, adjustable with the nifty threaded aspirator valve, it should be a little bit louder from the chopping of the air and bubbles but it will also draw less power from the decreased resistance of the air-water mixture. The protein skimming DC Mini Red Dragon 5000 will be available in later July for the same 499 Euro ($715) as the regular version. All Bubble King DeLuxe, Super Marines DoubleCones, and Vertex Kone protein skimmers will be upgradeable to the new DC MRD5K with a prototype adapter currently being tested and developed.

Jake Adams has been an avid marine aquarist since the mid 90s and has worked in the retail side of the marine aquarium trade for more than ten years. He has a bachelor’s degree in Marine Science and has been the managing editor of ReefBuilders.com since 2008. Jake is interested in every facet of the marine aquarium hobby from the concepts to the technology, rare fish to exotic corals, and his interests are well documented through a very prolific career of speaking to reef clubs and marine aquarium events, and writing articles for aquarium publications across the globe. His primary interest is in corals which Jake pursues in the aquarium hobby as well as diving the coral reefs of the world.